Barbershop Speaks celebrates one year of monthly events

MIAMI – The barbershop is an extraordinary place to find laughter because the environment brings just as much, if not more, joy than comedy shows. There is more sports knowledge being disseminated than ESPN and sometimes, there is more education than in local classrooms.

Usually, all of those things take place organically and without structure. However, Jefferson Noël, the founder of Barbershop Speaks, decided to be more intentional about the uniqueness of the barbershop experience.

He recognized that the barbershop is the community’s classroom where everyone is the teacher.

So last year he decided to do something about it. On July 9, 2016, Noël hosted his first event in the city of North Miami Beach.

Since then, Noël has hosted monthly events in North Miami, Liberty City and Opa-Locka.

His topics have included the state of the community, education, the presidential election, women empowerment, understanding local government and more.

This year, Barbershop Speaks celebrated its one-year anniversary on July 9 at Fweago Cutz, 11651 NE 2 Ave. in Miami, with an event rife with laughter, networking, dialogue and eating, leaving an imprint on the lives of the dozens of attendees.

Noël said he is looking forward to building on the momentum the organization has garnered and continuing to effect change in the areas they are currently in.

“Over this past year, Barbershop Speaks has provided a free marketplace of ideas for individuals in the community to learn, grow, connect and expand,” Noel said.

“The one-year anniversary proved to provide the community with a sense of purpose and direction. I am thrilled for what took place Sunday night and will continue from the groundwork that was laid.”

According to Noël, future plans include expanding Barbershop Speaks’ reach throughout Miami-Dade County and partnering with organizations to create workshops that further educate people in the community.